The present invention generally relates to a system and method of fastening one or more pieces of material together in a wide range of applications. It is desirable to couple materials together in a manner that is both stable and secure. More specifically, the present invention allows for structures to be made of pieces that are securely coupled together without necessarily requiring welding or fasteners, although, optionally, welding and/or fasteners may also be used and/or required. The resulting structures are made of stable, sturdy and load bearing joint connections and are, for example, easy to assemble and cost-effective.
In the past, ways of fastening materials together have included welding and non-welding techniques. Non-welding fastening techniques have, for example, used all types of pins, screws, elbow, tee, crosses, standard and custom fittings, and bolts as fasteners to hold materials together. While these fasteners may hold materials together securely, they generally add to the cost of the structure. Also, fasteners can rust, become loosened, break under a heavy weight burden, and be stripped so as to no longer be amenable to tightening or loosening. Further, in many arrangements, it is not easy or effective to use fasteners due, for example, to constraints in size and materials. For example, fasteners are infeasible on many very small applications, such as those in the field of nanotechnology.
Welding is also used as a means of coupling some types of materials together. Welding, however, has many disadvantages. Welding requires a skilled technician to perform the fastening technique, because it is dangerous, requires special tools, safety equipment, and knowledge of how to carefully position materials to result in the desired final structure. Furthermore, welding presents a wild fire hazard, due to flying sparks; welding forms permanent attachments that are generally irreversible; welds may fracture, rust, or otherwise be unsuitable for bearing heavy loads; welding is not feasible for use with many types of materials, such as plastics and many composites that might be desirable building materials; welding compromises the integrity of plating or coating in or near the weld joint—e.g., at the present time, even properly done welds can cause a brittleness in the heat affected area that may not be picked up by inspections of strength, such as X-rays; and, for example, welding may not be a feasible means of fastening materials on the nanotechnology scale as of today.
Another commonly used way of fastening materials together is using a fastener such as an elbow or joint coupling piece, to couple together various materials. However, this type of fastening often requires, for example, skilled assembly and custom made fasteners. Also, fastening materials together using an elbow or separate joint piece is sometimes used for applications that are merely ornamental, and the resulting joints may have limited structural strength and load bearing capacity.
It can be seen that a connection that requires welding, joint pieces or fasteners is not always desirable or cost effective. The present invention is directed to eliminating the necessity of such types of joining, without excluding the use of those means when desirable.
It is especially desirable to couple materials together using an improved joint connection, for example, for fencing, animal pens, ornamental fencing, gates, antennas, ladders, railings, scaffolding, and other uses such as, but not limited to, metal wall studs, building structural members, oilwell downhole perforating equipment. The improved joint connection of the present invention does not necessarily require welding or fasteners, although optionally welding and/or fasteners may be used. The improved joint connection is desirable in the fastening of multi-component systems such as structural strengthening designs for support including, for example, support beams for roofing, support beams of airplane wings, tent-like structures, temporary buildings and hunting units such as deer stands and deer blinds, outdoor venue applications, and other uses such as, but not limited to ships, bridges, HVAC duct work, man ways, sewer, water and electrical conduits, vents, nanotech structures, automotive structures, bumpers, and pick-up truck accessories.
Similarly, an improved joint connection as disclosed herein is desirable for the secure construction of stair rails, catwalks, and safety railing and in machinery and equipment, as a component of a larger device or system with moving parts such as, for example, construction equipment, conveyor framework of all types, sand, gravel, and rock crushing equipment framework, cattle handling and milking equipment, animal laboratory equipment, automotive components, motorcycle, bicycle, tricycle, and unicycle components, irrigation equipment (for example, center pivots), and other uses such as, but not limited to harvesting equipment, farm equipment, mowers, and security equipment such as jail, commercial, or residential door locks and devices.
There is similarly a need for a design to connect materials together without necessarily requiring welding or fasteners, for such applications as connecting materials for strengthening structural designs such as, but not limited to, commercial fishing applications, space station or space craft applications, helix-type designs, medical and/or surgical devices, agricultural grain storage and handling, water towers, petrochemical storage tanks, highway signage structures, wildlife feeder structures, isotainer frames, light beacon towers, duct systems, among other envisioned applications, and other uses such as, but not limited to microwave towers, cell phone towers, oilfield drilling equipment, oilfield completion equipment, and oilfield servicing and testing equipment.
There is also a need for a design to connect materials together on the small scale, including in the field of nanotechnology, where the use of welding and fasteners is often infeasible. There is also a need for a design to connect dissimilar materials, such as, for example, to connect a steel tube to a plastic or wooden object.
More particularly, there is a need for a joint connection in a fence brace assembly that does not necessarily require welding or fasteners. Barbed wire fences and other animal fencing materials such as mesh and electrical fencing are commonly used on ranches and farms to contain livestock and keep out predators and trespassers. Such fences are constructed by setting posts in the ground, and attaching strands of barbed wire to each post in a line of posts. Typically, the posts used are wooden or metal, and at corners or gates in the fence, a brace is used to keep the posts upright and the wire tight along the line of the fence. It is common to use a combination of wood posts and metal posts, where the metal posts, assembled into a brace, are installed at corners or gates and at adjacent post locations. Commonly, a metal rail is welded in place between the end, corner, or gate post and the adjacent metal post, and wooden, metal or plastic posts are used for the rest of the line of fence. Barbed wire can be strung securely between the metal end, corner, or gate posts and the wooden posts along the line of the fence.
A brace assembly is an anchor point that is designed to withstand the load from the fence wires. The end and corner posts are relied upon to hold the fence tight, prevent sagging and prevent the fence from failing. Under normal conditions, the tensioned fence wires will exert a pull on the brace of 1,000 to 1,500 pounds, and under cold weather conditions, may exert a pull as high as 2,500 pounds. Additional load stress is delivered to the wires by, for example, sand and snow drifts, livestock pushing against the fence, fallen trees, motor vehicles and other such stresses. When end and corner brace assemblies are properly constructed, a few line posts can fail without affecting the whole fence, and breaks in the fencing wire can be easily repaired; compared with the failure of a brace assembly that may require that the entire fence be rebuilt. As is well-known by one skilled in the art, the brace assembly width is typically at least two times the height of the fence, and preferably two and a half times the height of the fence.
While a commonly used welded fence brace assembly may provide a satisfactory barbed wire fence, it is often inconvenient, expensive, and dangerous to weld on location in every location along the fence line where a corner or gate post is desired. Welding has all of the other disadvantages discussed above. It is desirable to build a fence brace assembly, particularly those used for in-line, line end, corner or gate posts, such that welding is merely optional. It is similarly desirable to build a fence brace assembly that may be easily and inexpensively assembled on the location by a layperson desiring a fence.
Many fence brace assemblies using wooden posts also employ an in-line strainer wire, which squeezes the wooden posts together and serves to keep the posts vertical and under tension. The no-weld joint of the present invention eliminates the need for an in-line strainer wire, which is difficult to install and requires on-going maintenance for the beneficial effect. The present invention eliminates the need for an in-line strainer wire by employing a design that stabilizes and secures the member to the posts at the desired angle.
Generally, fence brace assemblies have been sold in two ways. First, a fence brace assembly can be sold whole, already fully or partially welded together. One such a fence brace assembly is commonly known as an H-post or a V-post. However, assembled, already welded portions of fence are awkward to transport as well as install. Second, fence brace assemblies can be sold as individual pieces in a kit. When the pieces are sold separately and unassembled, building the fence brace assembly typically requires welding. There is, therefore, a need for a kit that may be sold with the pieces disassembled, that may be put together without requiring welding. Such a kit would be easy to transport and simple enough for a layperson to assemble with little or no assistance.
Hence, there is a need for a design for a joint connection that does not necessarily require welding or fasteners, yet provides a stable, load bearing connection. Furthermore, there is a need specifically for a design for a fence brace assembly with a joint connection that does not necessarily require welding or other fasteners, and can be easily assembled by a layperson building the fence.